#nospyPhone Protests Planned at Apple Stores in Major Cities on Eve of iPhone 13 Debut
**Organizers say opposition won’t stop until Apple fully cancels plan to install spyware on devices**
Contact: press@fightforthefuture.org
As Apple prepares for it’s annual #AppleEvent on September 14, people across the country are organizing protests outside Apple stores for September 13 to demand the company fully cancel its plan to instal client-side scanning software on millions of devices.
Led by Fight for the Future, and with the support of EFF, protesters will hold banners, signs, and display messages on their phones outside of Apple stores. They’ll also deliver thousands of petition signatures and give statements about why they oppose Apple’s plan.
WHAT: #nospyphone Protests
WHEN: Monday, September 13, 6:00 pm local time
WHERE: locations tracked at https://www.nospyphone.com/#map
VISUALS: Groups outside Apple stores in NYC, San Francisco, Boston, Atlanta, Portland, OR, and Washington D.C. with, signs and banners, presentation of petitions, interview protesters
Despite Apple’s recent announcement that it would postpone the rollout of its scanning software, organizers are still pushing the company to permanently shelve its misguided plan.
“Apple can’t just shove this horrible phone scan plan to the side in order to avoid bad press during its Apple Event,” says Caitlin Seeley George (she/her), campaign director at Fight for the Future. “If Apple moves forward with installing this software it would be a total game changer—opening up the door to unprecedented surveillance and forcing the entire communications industry to follow suit. We can’t let this happen, which is why people are showing up to call out Apple’s hypocrisy and demand it put an end to this phone scan plan.”
“Let’s be perfectly clear: you can’t be a values-driven privacy-focused company and an aspiring monopoly with authoritarian policies at the same time,” added Fight for the Future director Evan Greer (she/her). “Apple’s proposal to forcibly install what amounts to malware on millions of people’s phones is just the latest misstep from a company that already has a dodgy track record when it comes to human rights. Apple’s glimmering reputation as the good guys of Silicon Valley is crumbling. If they truly care about the safety of our children, and ensuring they grow up in a future where basic rights are protected, Apple should be expanding and strengthening encryption on their devices, not undercutting it. Listen to security experts. Encrypt iCloud and fix the vulnerabilities in iMessage. Publicly commit to never implementing on-device content scanning.”
####